


Alphabet Soup: The greatest payment

by Windfighter



Category: Stand Still Stay Silent
Genre: Gen, Sorry Lalli, Whumptober 2018
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-28
Updated: 2018-11-28
Packaged: 2019-09-01 23:36:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,458
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16775203
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Windfighter/pseuds/Windfighter
Summary: Getting Tuuri back to the living comes at a great cost.





	Alphabet Soup: The greatest payment

**Author's Note:**

> Prompt: Severe Illness  
> Character: Lalli

The swan of Tuonela stared at him. Tuuri was standing next to it. Lalli held his breath.

”It won't be free”, the swan said.

Lalli nodded. He knew, but he needed to do this for Onni.

”Well then”, the swan pushed Tuuri over to Lalli, ”you are free to go.”

Lalli took her hand and led her out of the spirit realm before the swan could change its mind.

They got stuck in quarantine when they came back. Tuuri because she was non-immune and Lalli because he had disobeyed orders and snuck out in the Silent World when his superiors wasn't looking. They played games, Tuuri talked at him. Sometimes he talked back. Onni came to visit them. There were tears, lots of them. It wasn't all bad. Every now and then he woke up in the weird dreamscape where he met Emil. Emil also talked at him. Everyone talked at him.

One of the cats patrolling the quarantine facility hissed at him. It wasn't unusual and he hissed back. One of the workers got alarmed and set off the warning sirens.

”He's immune, turn those things off again!”

”But the cat hissed at him!”

”They always do that!”

The facility fell quiet again. Lalli scratched his neck and slid down under the bed. His dreamscape was a bit disorted, some of the trees burned, but that probably had with Emil to do. Sometimes Onni visited him in the dream world, it was safe now after they had taken care of It. His neck itched in the dreamworld as well.

The cat hissed at him again, fluffed up. He hissed back. His superior stopped outside.

”You have to stop doing that, Lalli, you make people nervous.”

”Hmf.”

”I'm quite serious, don't hiss at the cat, it's just doing its job.”

”Fine.”

”Hey, Lalli!” Tuuri called and put up a game on the wall between them. ”Want to play chess?”

He didn't quite want to, but there was little else to do. He sat down on his side and they started playing. His neck and sholder itched and he scratched at them.

”Itchy?” Tuuri asked with a laugh.

”Mm.”

She started the game, Lalli still wasn't entierly sure how to play it.

”So...” she said after a while. ”What do you think the payment is? That the gods require for my return?”

Lalli shrugged. He was still waiting for a sign from them. Tuuri took his king again. He wasn't sure she knew how to play either. His head was heavy and he leaned it against the table.

”Are you okay?”

”Mf.”

She started setting the game up again and he closed his eyes.

”Lalli?” her voice sounded kind of far away. ”Are you asleep already?”

”Almost.”

”...I guess we can play later.”

He heard her reach for a book so he sank down under the bed and fell asleep. He was coughing when he woke up. He buried deeper under the blanket, then peeked outside again. A shiny green moose was in his room. One of the workers stood on the other side of the wall staring at it.

”Lalli?” Tuuri asked.

He scrambled out from the bed, rushed into the bathroom. His upper arm was itching. He grabbed the neck of his shirt, pulled it over his head. He coughed, took a few deep breaths before looking into the mirror.

He had to look away again. The skin on his neck, shoulder, arm and side of his chest had turned a disgusting shade of brownish red. There were blisters, blood oozing out of them after he had scratched himself while he slept. Some blisters had turned into holes that were slowly eating away at his skin. He sank down over the toilet, emptied his stomach into it. It had gone so fast. Was this the payment? He sat on the floor, leaned against the wall.

He should go out there, let them know. He had interacted with people before getting locked up. Immune people but he was immune as well. What if he had released a new type of the illness? But if he had it was too late anyway. Maybe it wasn't that, maybe something had changed, maybe he no longer was immune. He coughed again, shivered. Put the shirt back on. Would he die? Turn into a troll? He got up, his legs trembled. Of all the ways he could die he had never imagined this. Tuuri looked at him, tried to talk to him, but he ignored her, walked past the omen and up to the wall.

One of the cats hissed at him, another of them ran away. Lalli banged at the glass. One of the workers came up to it.

”Please don't touch the glass.”

Lalli pulled the neck of his shirt down, revealed the rash that had started covering him. The worker ran away and Lalli rested his head against the glass. It was cool, made some of his headache disappear.

”Lalli, what's going on?”

The omen disappeared as the worker returned together with three others. They opened the door, forced a mask on him and led him outside. Two ahead of him to lead the way and two behind to make sure he didn't ran off. He wasn't going to.

”Lalli?”

He smiled towards Tuuri.

”You're safe now, they gave you my immunity. This was the price.”

The ones behind him pushed him forward. Tuuri ran up to the glass, followed him.

”Lalli?!”

He waved at her.

”We'll see each other again. In Tuonela.”

”LALLI!”

He was led through a door and her voice disappeared. They took him to a smaller room, tied him to a chair. He didn't even try to struggle. His back was itching and he tried to scratch it against the chair.

”Do you have anyone you wish to say goodbye to?”

Emil. Lalli shook his head. It's not like he would be able to anyway.

”Someone will come and take care of you shortly.”

They left. Lalli coughed into the mask he had been given. He knew what take care off meant. He closed his eyes, forced his body to fall asleep. It was the weird landscape, he could hear yelling. He wandered through the forest, the voice got louder as he approached it.

”Lalli! Hi!” Emil. ”I... uh... got lost. I think?”

Emil blinked. Lalli's presence brought him back to his senses.

”Right, yes, sorry.” He pulled a hand through his hair. ”So, hmm...”

Emil sat down under a tree and Lalli came up to him, sank down next to him. Emil blinked.

”You okay?”

Lalli stared at the tree infront of them, absentmindedly scratched his neck and chest. He shouldn't be okay, he should be scared, but he felt calm.

”I am”, he admitted.

”Are you sure?”

Lalli nodded and Emil shrugged.

”If you want me to leave...”

He had pushed Emil away so many times. He grabbed Emil's hand.

”Stay with me. Until I have to go. It won't be long.”

”Of course?”

Emil looked confused. Lalli leaned against the tree. He didn't have anything to say. He listened to Emil's breathing, to his anxious movements. Emil had never been one to sit quietly and enjoy the silence. He could feel the needle in his arm and almost woke up.

”She'll be here soon”, he whispered.

”Who?”

”She.”

He glanced upwards. The shape of a swan was coming closer. Emil seemed to piece stuff together.

No, you can't...”

”It's the payment, I've accepted it.”

The swan landed. Both Emil and Lalli got up. Emil grabbed Lalli's arm as he took a step towards the swan.

”You can't leave me.”

”I have to.” Lalli pulled free, looked away. ”It's not about you, not everything is.” He turned back towards Emil, smiled. ”T-thank you. For becoming my friend.”

He waved towards Emil, backed up towards the swan. Emil was trying to follow him, but his feet got stuck in dreammud. Lalli turned towards the swan.

”If the price was my soul, why didn't you just keep it there?”

”Someone had to guide her back. Are you ready?”

”I am”, he turned to Emil again. ”You have to let me go.”

”I... I can't. You are my best friend!”

”And that's why you have to.”

Emil stopped struggling, clenched his hands.

”I'll get stuck otherwise. Like the spirits in Denmark.”

Emil looked away, then looked at Lalli again.

”I know, I just... I'll miss you. Thank you for being my friend.”

Emil disappeared, woke up, and the swan lifted from the ground, grabbed Lalli by the shoulders with her feet. The shape of his soul dissipated, leaving only a small bird. The bird followed the Swan towards the Bird's Path. Finally Lalli would know peace.


End file.
